At Tacky Central I run a herd of beautiful barefoot geldings, on the edge of the Chilterns (a nice way to say it’s hilly).

 

Using the Equicentral Land Management Ethos - so what does this mean? 

 

THE EQUICENTRAL SYSTEM:

The alternative horse, land, grazing management system - for the health and well-being of horses, people and the wider environment

 

https://www.equiculture.net/the-equicentral-system

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At the farm there is 30 acres. This is split in to 6-7 fields. Each field has access to a hard standing, “loafing” area. There are 3 loafing areas in total, some Mud Control, some Type 1, some limestone dust for varied terrain, with natural shelter. Each loaf contains hay, salt and water for the horses to access at any time.

 

This works with the horses natural instinct to rest in a safe space, but also so they come off the grass to reduce compaction in dryer times and churning up when it's wetter.

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All fields have a vast array of hedgerow trees for plenty of browsing to supplement their diverse grazing. This ensures their dietary needs are varied and full. We then rotate the fields around the loafing area. The field they are in is grazed down to 1-2” on average, and then they are rotated to the next so no field is grazed down to a minimum. This is to protect the integrity of the root structure to keep our soil aerated and healthy. 

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Once the horses are moved to a new field, the one they leave is topped for any roughs and then the manure is harrowed in. Any bare areas are muck spread and mulched to reduce weeds and mud forming. Then it's left for 6 weeks until the next grazing round arrives. 

 

I worm count and saliva test regularly. Then Dec/Jan we worm for encysted. Any horses wormed are restricted to a smaller paddock/loaf and poo picked so we do not jeopardise our wonderful dung beetles and other lovely soil creatures. They all have their job to do.